


And Baby Makes Seven

by westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist



Category: The West Wing
Genre: Alternate Universe, Children, Drama, F/F, F/M, Family, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2007-07-19
Updated: 2007-07-19
Packaged: 2019-05-15 15:51:12
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,436
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14793438
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist/pseuds/westwingfanfictioncentral_archivist
Summary: A baby is born





	And Baby Makes Seven

**Author's Note:**

> A copy of this work was once archived at National Library, a part of the [ West Wing Fanfiction Central](https://fanlore.org/wiki/West_Wing_Fanfiction_Central), a West Wing fanfiction archive. More information about the Open Doors approved archive move can be found in the [announcement post](http://archiveofourown.org/admin_posts/8325).

  
Author's notes:

CJ/Danny, CJ/OMC, Danny/OMC; alternate universe, total fantasy (or is it?)

Introducing Danielle Alicia Reeves

  


Introducing Randolph Cregg, brother of CJ and husband of Gina.

Rating Adult - Marital sex and earthy language

Spoilers through end of series; may contain spoilers for \"Holding Hands on the Way Down\"

Not mine, never were, never will be, but they consume my soul

Feedback and criticism always welcomed

* * *

Early afternoon, Wednesday, January 14, 2015; Kensington, CA

CJ grasped at the rigid foam bolster that was supporting her head and shoulders, tearing at the corduroy cover with the fingers of her right hand. With her left one, she tugged at the fingers of Paul's left hand, brought it to her lips, and kissed them desperately.

"Love you," she whispered in pants as her passions mounted.

"So sweet." His ragged voice took on the hoarseness it always did when he possessed her. He returned his mouth to the back of her neck as he knelt behind and over her, his right hand working his magic in rhythm with his gentle movement within her.

For some reason, CJ thought back to that first time, or, rather, right after that first time, when she told Paul that she had never been so aware of how good it would feel to be filled, to know that she needed the feel of something inside her, that the ache she had felt in the past was emptiness. She remembered how Paul smiled at her, told her to just wait until-".

When CJ asked until what, Paul just smiled again, and kissed her thoroughly. It wasn't until Thanksgiving, when she had been taking the birth control pills for ten days, until it was safe to make love with each without using a condom, until she and he could really feel skin upon skin, that she knew what he meant.

After thirty years, it was still the most wonderful feeling in the world.

"So sweet, so warm, so wet." She felt Paul's words vibrating against her neck more than she heard them.

And it was. Then it was warmer and wetter, so wet she felt it running down her legs.

"Sweetheart?"

"My water just broke."

He was out of her and off her in an instant, coming around to face her.

"Did I-?"

"Probably not, I mean, you've been so careful, and Mariska did say I was ready anytime. I guess what I thought were just Braxton-Hicks contractions were the start of the real thing."

"Claudia Jean, do you mean to tell me that you were having contractions and you let me make love to you?"

Except for their wedding vows, he had only called her "Claudia Jean" twice in all their time together, now and back when they were in school together. Once in those first few months, she was overly worried about an exam and just couldn't let go, so she tried to fake it. He knew right away, told her that he would spend all night, if necessary, to give her what she needed or he would accept the fact that on these hopefully few occasions, she wasn't open to it; but never, never, lie to him about it. The second time was when they had the disagreement about his defending the guy who spanked his fiancée in the lounge.

Paul helped her to sit on the side of the now soaking bed; CJ reached for the phone, punched in the number she knew by heart.

CJ explained the situation (well, not quite all of it) to the nurse, and was told to get to the hospital. Given her experience with Caitlin, they were about five hours away from seeing their baby.

"Let's take a quick shower and get going," Paul stood up and helped her to her feet. "We can call Deborah on the way to the hospital."

Deborah had taken Caitlin to get some shoes, and then was going to pick up Paddy at kindergarten.

"Well, Gloria said I could wash off, but I have to be careful. Now that the sac has broken, I have to careful of anything getting to the baby."

Now Paul was worried. "CJ, what if I leaked a little, what if I had germs?"

"Honey, her body is half made from you. And it's not as if you were coated in mud when you-".

Her laughter caused him to smile as they quickly cleaned up, grabbed her overnight bag, and drove to the hospital.

Two hours later.

"Now you be a good boy and do what Deborah tells you. I love you, Paddy. I'll see you tomorrow." CJ planted a loud kiss on the phone and handed it to her husband.

"You know, CJ, this hospital gives an expectant mother a great deal of discretion about who can be in the birthing room with her." Dr. Mariska Daglikova put her hands into the pockets of her light blue scrubs and smiled at her patient. "If you like the children could come down and be with you for a while. Some women even keep the other kids in here all through delivery."

CJ looked up at the tiny woman. With her black hair and almost black eyes, she looked more like one of the pixies in Paddy's books than the obstetrician who spent the last six months telling CJ to relax, sure she was an "elderly pregnancy", but everything pointed to a normal, healthy second and third trimester with a normal, healthy little girl at the end it.

CJ repeated her mantra.

First, she didn't want to scare the kids. It was going to be messy and it was going to be "uncomfortable". She didn't want to remind Paddy of what it was like when Danny was dying.

Second, when things really got going, she was going to say some pretty earthy, if not crude, things to and about her husband. If she gave her son time outs for saying things only half as bad as what she was going to say about Paul and what he could do with his body parts -.

Last, when the actual time came, she didn't want to be in this birthing room with its delicate teal walls, soft carpet, television, refrigerator, microwave, sofa, and chairs. She wanted to be in a fully equipped delivery room. She had already lost two "normal, healthy" babies and she didn't want to risk –

_Danny ran up to Mariah._

_"She's worried, and I'm worried for her. I know that Their ways are not always known to us, but you do have extra pull. Can't you please be there for her now, like you were that first time? Can't you go make sure that nothing happens with this child?"_

_"Danny, Danny, I'm there. Don't you recognize me?"_

_He looked down again, looked at the petite Croatian doctor, and back at Mariah._

_"How do you do that?"_

_"Bilocation. Don't you remember any of your Baltimore Catechism? Sister Mary Benedict would be very disappointed."_

_Danny looked at Mariah, and saw his sixth grade teacher in the blue habit of the Sister Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; she was the one who told him "Danny, you have a way with the written word. People will take your writings to heart. Never betray their trust; never write lies, never write meanness. Be true to your sources. Write to edify, not to denigrate."_

_"You were?"_

_"I have many names, Danny, many faces. Mariah. Sister Mary Benedict. Maria Guadalupe. Maria Angelica. Mary Margaret. Maristella._

_And he saw them all._

_The labor hall nurse who helped him through those terrible hours when the twins died at birth._

_The nun who laid the foundation with her insistence on grammar, punctuation, spelling, usage, and diagrammed sentences._

_The lactation coach who helped when Paddy was born and then when he found the lump in CJ's breast._

_The small Chinese woman in the Notre Dame dining hall who gave him food outside of normal hours on those terrible days when first his mother, and then his father died._

_The little girl who lived down the block who let him ride her tricycle and made mud pies with him that summer when he was five._

_The African-American nurse practitioner from Hospice who made his last days so pain-free._

_"Wow!" Danny sat down on the little cloud that had thoughtfully popped up under his butt. "Why did I rate having you in my life so many ways?"_

_"Ah, Danny, I hate to deflate your ego, but you weren't that special. I'm around all over the world for all the people. My Boy has a very hard time saying No' to me._

_"CJ will be fine. The baby will be fine. Relax, go play with your children, go play with Pistol, go have fun with Alicia, Brianna, and her men._

An hour later

Mariska Daglikova knew that CJ was, in all likelihood, worrying about nothing, but she was considerate of her patient's fears. They were in the delivery room, with all the equipment that made CJ just a bit more relaxed about the birthing process.

"You ever touch me again, I'm going to cut em off, throw em in the food processor, grind em up, cook em, and feed them to the neighbor's cat!"

"I'm sure you will." Paul laughed and slipped a couple of ice chips into CJ's mouth, then wiped her face with the damp cloth he was holding. (However, he did reflexively press his thighs together.)

"This is all your fault; you fucking did this to me."

"Well, that is the usual way to impregnate your wife. And I'm glad to hear you say that. I was afraid she might come out looking like Toby."

"When we went to Hanover in October, for Dartmouth's homecoming, you were gloating from here to the next century. In your late fifties and not only did you land a new wife, you knocked her up in less than five months; got her barefoot, pregnant, and in the kitchen."

"Damned straight. Had to put you in your place."

"Asshole arrogant man! I bet you're proud of yourself."

"You better believe it. Now, I think that Mariska wants you to push again. Come on, sweetheart, pretend you're shoving me out of the bed and saying you won't let me back in."

"Okay, CJ," the doctor chimed in, "the next one is going to be it. You need to keep going and going, like that funny little bunny, until you feel her come through. I'm going to give you a minute to get ready."

Paul wiped her face again, then kissed her brow.

"I love you, sweetheart."

"I know, but it doesn't get you off the hook for this!"

Then Mariska told her to take a deep breath and to start pushing.

In a few minutes, she had pushed enough.

They put the baby in CJ's arms. CJ looked at the child, then looked up at her husband. Tears were flowing freely down his face.

"I didn't mean any of it, Paul."

"I know, sweetheart. You are so wonderful. Just look what you did."

"What we did."

_The child looked past the woman in whose arms she lay, looked past the man who was holding the woman in one arm and tracing the features of the child's face with his other hand. With eyes as old as time, eyes bright with exultation, the child looked at the two people standing off to the side and just a bit off the floor and smiled. Then the eyes began to fade, as knowledge was forgotten._

_"Good bye, Jackie," Danny whispered._

_"Hello, Danielle Alicia, welcome to life, little namesake," Alicia buried her face in Danny's shoulder._

_"Come on, lets go to our star."_

They took the baby to the nursery to do a few more tests, to get her eye drops, her vitamins, and her first batch of shots.

CJ was returned to the birthing suite, where she was also bathed. Paul sat in the chair beside the bed, holding CJ's hand, telling her over and over how much he loved her.

They brought the baby to CJ; she opened her gown and held the child to her breast. It took about four tries, but nursing began.

Paul stared at his wife and his newest daughter for a few seconds, then lowered his head, clasped his hands between open knees, and thanked God.

"Paul?"

He looked up to see that CJ had scooted over in the bed and was patting it with her free hand. He slipped off his loafers, settled down beside her, and watched as his wife and his daughter bonded in that most special of relationships.

"Okay, darling, go to Papa." CJ handed the child to him and it was his turn to press his new daughter to his heart.

After a while, they unwrapped and undressed her, verifying for themselves that everything was normal, everything was perfect. After she was clothed again, Paul reached for his phone and took pictures.

When the nurse came for the baby, CJ at first protested. The woman told her that now that she had been fed, the baby would sleep for at least five or six hours; being born was hard work. The staff would want to continue to monitor her vitals, just to be sure. And CJ also needed to rest and recover from the birth. Tomorrow, assuming everything was still okay, she could keep the baby with her in the room. Tomorrow, the frequent feedings would begin in earnest; CJ should take advantage of this time.

So, with final kisses from her parents, Danielle Alicia Reeves was taken back to the nursery.

"Paul, we have to let the others know."

Paul sent Deborah the picture while CJ called on the land line. Yes, she was beautiful. No, Paul told Deborah, he wanted to call Derrick himself, and Joe, and CJ's brothers, and Danny's sister, but would she please call her uncle and also let her mom's sister know? CJ asked Deborah to call Carol and Diana and forward the picture. Paul told his oldest daughter he would probably be home in about 90 minutes; he wanted to spend a little more time with CJ, but the exhilaration was beginning to subside and he could sense that CJ was tiring. And Deborah, remember, you'll always be my first baby. CJ told Paddy and Caitlin that she missed them and that tomorrow, Papa and Deborah would bring them to see her and their new little sister.

Seattle, WA

Derrick Reeves felt the vibration of his phone against his left thigh, looked down, and saw his father's number on the screen.

"Hey, Dad," he said softly into the phone as he got up and walked out of the main reference room of the law library and into the hall.

"She's here. I'll send a picture. About an hour ago." Paul realized that his mind was beginning to be affected by the birth of his youngest child. "I'm sorry, I'm not making any sense."

"Dad, you are making perfect sense. Congratulations! Everything's okay, with CJ and the baby?"

"The baby is perfect. CJ's wonderful, exhausted," Paul looked over at his suddenly sleeping wife and thought she had never looked more beautiful, "but absolutely fine. I guess I'm exhausted myself."

"Look, Dad, I'll have to check flights, but I'm flying down Friday after my last class. I can't wait to see my littlest sister. I can only stay the weekend, unfortunately."

The words were on the tip of his tongue ("You don't have to do that, son, you have studying to do, it's your last term"), but then Paul realized that he wanted his son to be with them, to have the whole family together. "We'd love it, Derrick; families should be together on happy occasions like this. Will you let me cover the airfare? A last minute trip like this, it's got to be pricey." He had learned since the incident in the restaurant last April; his son would always be his son, but his son was also a man and deserved a man's respect. Offer; don't insist.

"How about we split it, Dad? And, Dad, I appreciate the help." Derrick had also learned since that occasion; no matter how old Derrick got, he would always be his father's son.

Berkeley, CA

He placed quick calls to Erin and to CJ's brothers, accepted their congratulations, and promised to send the pictures as soon as he hung up. And, yes, more pictures tomorrow. The doctor said that if all went well, CJ and the baby could go home on Friday. Deborah would be with them until early February, but after that, yes, he and CJ would welcome some help. They would work out the details later.

Then, with a soft kiss on CJ's mouth and a whispered "Thank you; I love you; I'll be back in the morning," he left the room for a final check on his newborn.

_Danny went over to the bed, sat down on the edge, and picked up CJ's hand in one of his. He brought the hand to his lips, and then lowered it as he reached with the other hand to stroke her hair and bent to kiss her forehead._

_"I love you forever, my Jeanie. She's a beautiful namesake. Eventually, we'll have to figure out what to call her when all of us are here and you meet the little girl we never knew we made. And I'm glad that Paul is taking the time to be with you, that the two of you will see this little one grow day by day. We were lucky; I had the whole summer and then only my classes for the next year. I feel so bad for the guys who had to go to the office, or Robin, flying all over the world._

_"I only wish-" His hand trailed down the length of her, just barely touching, tracing her jaw, then the curve of her left breast; he skimmed the still distended but smaller stomach, and ever so lightly brushed at the juncture of her legs._

_Then Danny moved to the sofa. He would keep sentry until Paul returned in the morning._

Paul looked through the nursery window. She was in the second row, a big pink "It's a girl!" sign with "Claudia and Paul" printed on the line for parents' names, on the back of her bassinet. She slept calmly in her little pink hat, her little pink blanket rising a falling ever so slightly with her even breathing.

One of the nurses smiled at him, came to the window, and mouthed, "Do you want to hold her?"

Paul smiled, shook his head from side to side, and said, "Take good care of her."

_Alicia came to stand beside Paul, placing her arm around his waist._

_"She's beautiful, my love, but then, coming from the two of you, and knowing who her soul is, what else would one expect? And don't worry; the twins know that they are still in your heart, perhaps, in their still young and somewhat foolish minds, more than they think they should be. Now Paddy and Caitlin, they might need some extra attention, make sure they know that the new baby, especially since she is yours and not Danny's, doesn't mean you love them any less. You're a wonderful father, Paul; I only wish that Leslie and Theo," Alicia thought she felt a tear, but couldn't be sure._

_"Anyway, go home and get some rest. I'll be here with the baby and Danny is with CJ. We won't let anything happen to either of them."_

_Alicia reached up with her free hand, cupped Paul's cheek and ran her thumb over his mustache. She brushed her mouth across his. Letting go, she slipped through the glass window into the newborn nursery, and took up her watch over the little girl with Danny's and her names._

Kensington, CA

Paul opened the door to the kitchen.

Deborah, Paddy, and Caitlin looked up from the table where they were eating meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and green beans. Paddy jumped up and ran to hug his Papa around the hips.

"I missed you. Where's Mama?"

Paul reached down and picked up the boy. "We told you, Mama and Danielle Alicia have to stay at the hospital for a little bit."

"Are they sick? Like Daddy?"

Paul sighed to himself. He and CJ thought that Paddy was beginning to understand that what happened to Danny was an aberration, not the norm. Hopefully, it was just the uncertainty about the new baby that was causing this latest bout of fear.

"No, they aren't sick. It's just that they need special care right now and it's easier to do that at the hospital. Remember right after Halloween, when Billy had to have to tonsils removed? How he stayed at the hospital for a few days? That's the case with Mama and the baby."

"Do they get to eat all the ice cream they want?"

"Well, Danielle Alicia won't be eating anything for quite a while, just drinking milk. Remember when Caitlin was just a baby? And I don't think Mama wants that much ice cream." (Right now, Mama doesn't want much of anything, but four hours ago, she told me she was going to sauté my genitals and eat them with her brother's prize-winning Pinot Noir.)

He walked over to the table, where Caitlin was holding up her arms, crying out "Papa! Papa!" Paul lowered Paddy, picked up the little girl from her booster chair, and gave her a big hug.

Still holding onto her, he reached down for Deborah's kiss. "Hi, baby, thank you again for being here, for helping."

When asked what he wanted to drink, Paul replied, "I'll get it later."

Understanding, Deborah got up, went to the liquor cabinet, and poured her father several fingers' worth of the pot-still whiskey with which Danny's family kept her father and CJ supplied.

Still holding onto Caitlin, Paul showed them the rest of the pictures and explained again to Paddy that Mama was really tired and was sleeping; it would not be a good thing to call her and wake her up. The little boy pouted a little, but brightened when told that his big brother would be coming to visit on Friday night.

Deborah fetched a plate and cutlery and at his direction, fixed his plate. His nerves a bit shaky with relief, Paul wasn't able to eat with one hand, so Deborah took Caitlin from him, distracting the little girl with an ice cream bar when she began to fuss.

The calls began to come in – the Seaborns, the Lymans, the Muñoz', Hank and Steve, President and Mrs. Bartlet, Carol and David Palmer. Hogan Cregg emailed from her aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean. In between, he managed to call CJ's assistant and his own, so they could spread the word among their academic colleagues. He also called Greg Watson and the senior pastor at his parish.

He was used to Caitlin being "clingy", but Paddy was also in need of reassurance. The little boy nestled at his side while he held Caitlin and read from her storybook. After she closed her eyes, Paul set her in her crib, and then sat with Paddy as the boy took his bath.

Paul read to Paddy from the boy's book. After two chapters, closed the book.

"Papa, can I sleep with you tonight?"

Paul thought about the bed he and CJ left earlier in the day.

"I don't think so. But I'll stay here with you until you fall asleep." (And, depending on hot tired I am, if I can't find the energy to change our bed, I'll probably come crash on Derrick's.)

But when Paul walked into the master bedroom, he saw that the bed had been made up with fresh linen, the bolsters, and extra pillows neatly stacked off to the side. When CJ told Deborah where to find her address book, where to find the numbers for Carol and Diana, neither she nor Paul thought about what they had been doing right before they came to the hospital.

"Thank you for changing the bed." Paul walked into the kitchen, where Deborah was just wiping down the counters and the stove. The dishwasher hummed through the wash cycle. He pulled her away from the sink and kissed her forehead.

"I figured you'd be too tired to deal with it."

Both father and daughter blushed slightly. In spite of the discussions they had had over the last six or seven years, both were still a little hesitant about each other's sexuality.

"Deborah, I meant what I said before; CJ and I are so grateful that you are with us now, for all the help you've been, for all the help you will be." Deborah had run the errands, had taken Paddy back and forth to kindergarten, and had taken Caitlin to daycare. "And, one more time, we are trusting you when you say this isn't interfering with your coursework or your internship. We don't want to be the cause of any delay in you getting your PhD."

"Daddy, it's been good for me, too. It's given me time to rest, to do something different, to think. And I'm perfectly fine with the courses; I'm on schedule to get my dissertation done by next fall, defend it, and get the degree a year from May. Four years isn't that bad for a PhD. It's not as if the course work is cut and dried, the way Derrick's is. Besides, what would you do if we both were graduating at the same time? College was hard enough, one day apart, even though the drive between Oberlin and Oxford was only four hours."

"Well, I notice that your young man has been keeping in touch." Deborah's cell had rung with a particular tone twice a week since she arrived in December. And once, Paul picked up the land line only to be greeted as "Dr. Reeves" by a very polite male voice who identified himself and asked that Deborah be told that he had received a "not in service" message from her cell phone company and was concerned.

Deborah smiled, hung her head, and nodded up and down.

"Daddy, you look exhausted. Go to bed."

"I am; I'm just going to lock up. You?"

"I'm going to get in the tub and read a little first."

As he stripped down and crawled into bed, he realized that it was the first time he had slept in the bed alone since their wedding fourteen months ago. He really should set the alarm on his cell for an hour, to check on Deborah in the tub, he thought, and then he thought no more.

Thursday January 15, 2015

The next morning, Paul was up early, ready to get to the hospital as soon as possible. Deborah would bring the kids around eleven. Paul called the kindergarten, explained that Paddy would be out of school today and tomorrow.

Paul stopped at the florist on the way to the hospital and picked up a big bouquet of imported gerberas in a celadon vase. At the nurses' station in the maternity ward, they told Paul that his daughter was now in the room with his wife and he could go right in.

Apparently, CJ had just finished nursing because her gown was open, but Danielle Alicia was lying face down across her knees and CJ was rubbing little circles on the baby's back.

He heard the burp as he bent down to kiss CJ.

"May I take her?"

"She needs changing first." CJ reached for the child.

"Let me."

After changing the baby, Paul sat in the chair next to the bed and sang to the little one until her eyes closed and her gentle breathing indicated that she was asleep. He gently set the baby in the bassinet, then, slipping his hand into his inside jacket pocket, he sat down on the bed next to CJ. Kissing the side of her hair, he swept the locks to one side, slipped the tennis necklace made of marquise cut garnets around her neck and fastened the magnetic clasp.

"Thirty-five years ago, I dreamt of this day. Thank you, sweetheart, for giving me this child."

She turned around in the bed and kissed him. "Thank you."

They looked over the flowers sent by their friends and family. Paul had brought his laptop and they read over the congratulatory emails. There were a few phone calls.

Josh called from the White House.

"Congrats on the kid, CJ, how did you manage to get everyone to write their transition documents? It's only five days and I've only received ten of them!"

Franklin Hollis called with his wishes and to tell her, in confidence, that Matt Santos had agreed to take over "Road to a Better World". They would make the official announcement in May. Helen Santos was insisting on four months of decompression before moving to California.

Toby and Andy called to add their expression of joy and to tell her that they had good news themselves. Come September—

A volunteer came in and helped CJ to the shower, to bathe and to wash her hair.

Paul designed a birth announcement and prepared a mailing list.

The nurses' station rang. Deborah, Paddy, and Caitlin were here; Paul needed to come to verify their identities and to authorize their admission to CJ's room.

The three of them were identified and banded with bar-coded bracelets (which Paddy thought was the coolest thing ever) which would give them access to the birthing wing. (However, only CJ's and Paul's bracelets would allow the baby to be taken from CJ's room.)

"Mama! I missed you!" Paddy leapt on the bed and wrapped his arms around his mother.

"And I missed you, too! I'm so glad to see you!"

"Ma!" Caitlin was normally her Papa's girl, but she too missed her mother and struggled to get out of Paul's arms.

Deborah briefly kissed CJ. While the youngsters jumped on the bed and hugged their mother, Deborah went to the bassinet and stared at her new sister.

"May I hold her?"

Smiling, Paul lifted the baby from the bassinet and put her in his oldest daughter's arms.

"Oh, look at those eyes!"

"Yes, I guess I've got a recessive gene from some pre-Civil War ancestor we don't know about. They could change, but she'll probably have CJ's eyes."

The baby began to stir a bit fitfully.

"Give her to me," CJ reached up for her newborn.

"Paddy, Caitlin, this is your new sister. This is Danielle Alicia." She set the baby on the bed and unwrapped the blanket.

"Her fingers are so tiny!" Paddy slipped his index finger into the baby's hand.

"Dolly!" Caitlin reached for the baby's leg.

"No, sweetie, she's not a doll. This is your sister, Danielle Alicia."

"Dan – sha." This time Caitlin took the lollipop from her mouth and put it next to the baby's mouth. "No cry."

"Sweetie, I'm afraid she's too little for a lollipop." Paul sat on the edge of the bed and pulled Danny's daughter into his lap.

"But she is hungry." CJ gathered the child in her arm and reached for the tie of her gown.

"Do you want me to take the kids?" Deborah left the sentence unfinished.

Paddy had discovered the TV remote and was fascinated by the wall mounted screen; Caitlin had fallen asleep in Paul's arms.

"No, unless you would be more comfortable not being here. I don't mind, Deborah."

Deborah decided to sit on the couch and picked up the paper that had been delivered with CJ's breakfast.

The family (minus one) passed the next few minutes quietly. After being fed, burped, and changed, Danielle Alicia fell asleep again. CJ began to nod and Paul was about to take Deborah, Paddy, and Caitlin to the cafeteria when the door to the room opened.

It was Mariska with a tall African-American man. The name tag on his white coat read "Philip Barr, MD".

The obstetrician took in the family gathering and said, "We can come back later."

CJ woke up immediately and looked at Paul, terror beginning to rise in her eyes.

"Deborah." Paul looked at his daughter with a silent plea.

"Come on, Paddy, let's go down to the cafeteria." She picked up Caitlin and took the children from the room.

Mariska made the introductions.

"What's wrong?" Paul sat on the bed, and gathered CJ's hands in his.

"The baby is fine; so is Mrs. Reeves," Dr. Barr hastened to reassure the couple.

"Then why-?"

"Something showed up in CJ's post-delivery blood work and then when we checked the baby-," Mariska started.

"You said nothing was wrong!" Paul could hear the panic in CJ's voice.

"Sweetheart, let's listen to what Mariska and Dr. Barr have to say."

Mariska began again. "Dr. Barr specializes in genetic disorders. When I noticed the difference in the blood samples, I contacted him. I'll let him explain."

"Mrs. Reeves-"

"CJ," she interjected.

"CJ," the man repeated with a smile. "Your records indicate that your blood type is A-positive. Mr. Reeves," he turned to Paul, "what is your blood type?"

"It's Paul, and I'm B-positive."

"Then things are beginning to fall into place.

"There is an antigen in CJ's post-delivery blood work that wasn't there before the delivery.

"Your daughter is also A-positive, so she received her A' from CJ, and an O' from you, Paul. Apparently, on that O' chromosome is a genetic marker that CJ's body registered as a threat and CJ's body has developed an antibody to it. Should you conceive another child and should it receive an O' chromosome from you, Paul, CJ's body would reject the fetus and she would miscarry. We felt you should have this information."

"But CJ is fine, the baby is fine," Paul said slowly, asking for confirmation. As both doctors nodded their heads, Paul continued, "but the baby has this chromosome. She could pass it on to her children?"

"Yes, but the problem only occurs when a male who has the chromosome passes it to a child. Any children conceived after that first child would be miscarried. That's why we've only recently discovered it. You would have to be able to trace through four or five generations. Your daughter would have to pass the chromosome to a son and your grandson would have to pass it to his child; that's a twenty-five percent chance for your great-children. If your daughter has a daughter with the chromosome, she would have to pass it to a son who passes it to a child; that becomes a twelve point five percent, and so on."

"My first wife, I was widowed before CJ and I married, we had twins and then Alicia miscarried twice, did I pass this to my twins?"

"Do you know your first wife's blood type and those of your older children? We may have to do some testing," Dr. Barr responded.

"Alicia was O-positive. Derrick is B; Deborah is O," Paul's eyes dimmed as he realized that he had passed the problem to both his daughters. He would have to tell Deborah.

"We felt you should have this information in case you were planning to have more children," Dr. Barr concluded.

"Well, it's obvious. I need to get a vasectomy," Paul stated.

"Darling, do you really think? Scott said I was at the beginning of menopause. I mean, if there's any chance, I could go back on the pill."

"No. I'm the problem. If I had known this twenty years ago, I wouldn't have put Alicia through what she suffered, what we both suffered. We could have pursued adoption earlier, perhaps have been approved."

_Alicia hugged Theo and Leslie._

_"Mommy, why is Daddy crying?" This from Theo._

_"He feels bad because the two of you never had a chance._

_"But we're happy here. I wish there was some way we could make Daddy feel better."_

_Alicia swept the bangs from her daughter's eyes. "Later, we can go visit him. Maybe when he tells your sister."_

The doctors left CJ and Paul with literature. Dr. Barr gave Paul his card ("Have your internist or urologist contact me if there's any question about the need for the vasectomy. Also, if you think other members of your family might need to know, or would be willing to be part of our ongoing research-") and also the card of a family therapist.

CJ held her husband in her arms and comforted him. The two of them drowsed off to sleep until the baby woke them with her needs.

Deborah called from the cafeteria and was told to come back to the room with the children. They took more pictures and spent the rest of the afternoon together.

Mariska and the children's pediatrician came by. Everyone checked out: CJ and the baby could go home tomorrow as planned.

Deborah took the children out to supper while Paul and CJ ate the candlelit meal that the hospital provided for parents on the mom's last night in the hospital.

_As Paul left a sleeping CJ, with a sleeping baby in the bassinet beside the bed, Danny stole into the room with Cosmas, Damien, and Danielle. The three children took turns looking at and touching their newest sister._

_"So Jackie really doesn't remember anymore? She never will again?"_

_"Not until she gets back to heaven. And let's hope that won't be for a long time. Let's hope that she and Jack, I mean, Hoop, find each other and are good for each other this time._

_"Now I'm going to stay here for a while and make sure they're okay. You kids go back to Pistol."_

_"Where's Alicia?" Danielle asked._

_"She has something special to do tonight. Scoot." He pushed the kids lightly on their fannies and settled down in the chair beside the bed._

When Paul arrived home, he checked on Paddy and Caitlin, who were sleeping, worn out from their adventures.

"Deborah, honey, could you come sit with me in the living room for a while?"

Holding her hands, he explained what the doctors had told CJ and him that afternoon.

"I'm so sorry, baby, to have given you this thing."

"Daddy, you didn't know. The doctor told you, they had no idea twenty years ago. And I'm glad they didn't know. I might not be here."

_Later that night, Leslie and Theo curled up against the father they never really knew and kissed him in his sleep._

_Alicia sat by the side of Deborah's bed and wiped away the tears her daughter had managed to hold inside until her father could not see or hear, could not feel any more guilt than he already was feeling._

Friday January 16, 2015

Paul brought CJ and the baby home shortly before noon. Paul carried the baby into the house so CJ would be free to hug and kiss Paddy and Caitlin.

CJ, Paddy, and Caitlin cuddled together on the bed in the master bedroom while she read a story to the two children. Meanwhile, Deborah made lunch for the children; she kept it warm until the baby woke up and demanded nourishment. While CJ nursed the newborn, the kids ate lunch. Afterward, Paul changed and rocked Danielle Alicia while CJ took a nap, Paddy and Caitlin curled around her like puppies.

Derrick's last class ended at noon, so he was able to catch a mid-afternoon flight out of Seattle. It was a few minutes shy of 6:00 PM when his rented Corolla pulled up outside the house.

"Derrick!"

Paddy leaped up from in front of the television and the "Teen-age Mutant Ninja Turtles" DVD that he was watching, ran over, and hugged his brother.

"I'm glad you're here! There's too many girls!"

"Buddy, someday you'll realize that there is no such thing as too many girls."

Derrick went over to where Caitlin and Deborah were on the floor, playing with blocks, and kissed the two of them. He thought he sensed something with his twin, but figured it was probably a bit of exhaustion; she had been running the household, for all intents and purposes, since he had returned to Seattle five days after Christmas.

"I've got something for the two of you."

Derrick handed Paddy a bag that said "U DUB Bookstore" and a similar one to Caitlin.

"Wow! Thanks!" Paddy pulled out a "Washington Huskies" hoody and sweatpants. (Caitlin's bag contained a miniature cheerleader's outfit.)

"Nothing for me?" Deborah asked, laughing.

"You," Derrick pointed his fingers at her, "get a massage at the day spa tomorrow. I'm taking over here for the day. But I did talk to one of my housemate's girlfriends and she picked out some smut for you." Derrick handed Deborah a bag with two paperback romances. He looked around. "Dad, CJ, my littlest sister?"

"They're back here! She's so small!" Paddy jumped up again and pulled his brother toward the bedroom wing of the house.

"Mama! Papa! Derrick's here!"

"Wonderful!" The voice from the open bedroom door was welcoming, so Derrick walked through it, and stopped.

His father was sitting in the big overstuffed easy chair. CJ was sitting on his lap, his left arm around her shoulders; his father's right hand was on the backside of the little bundle that was pressed against his stepmother's left breast.

She was showing less skin than she would in an evening dress and neither she nor his father seemed concerned about his presence and that of Paddy. But the entire scene was so intimate, so special, that Derrick felt as if he and his brother were trespassing on a moment that belonged between two parents and their newborn.

"Oh," he said. "I'll come back."

"Don't go; she's finished for now." CJ slipped a small blanket over her left shoulder and over the baby's head, detached the child, and handed her to her husband. "Come meet your sister."

As Paul carefully handed the child to his son, CJ slipped off her husband's lap (with a light kiss on his cheek) and fastened her blouse.

Derrick fell in love. "She's beautiful; you guys do great work." He traced the baby's facial features with his index finger, and then reached over to kiss CJ's cheek and give her the baby. As CJ started to burp the little one, Derrick turned to Paul and gave him a huge hug. "As Neil would say, Mazel Tov', Dad."

Then he reached for another bag, one he had dropped by his feet when he had taken the baby, and handed it to CJ.

There was a little newborn set – hat, bib, onesie, and booties, bearing the Oberlin crest and the words "Future Yeowoman" – and a blanket with the Husky logo.

By this time, Deborah and Caitlin had joined them in the bedroom. Caitlin reached up to pull on Paul's hand.

"Papa! Hold!"

Paul bent down and lifted the little girl. Caitlin was beginning to show signs of sibling jealousy.

"So what's it like having a baby sister, buddy? Is it fun?" Derrick ruffled Paddy's hair.

"I guess it's okay. I got to stay home from school yesterday and today."

"No fun!" Caitlin stated her opinion.

"Sweetie, don't you like Danielle Alicia?" Paul asked the little one in his arms.

"Dan sha sleep. Dan sha cry. Dan sha eat. Dan sha cry. Dan sha poop. Dan sha sleep. Dan sha no play."

"Well, Kitty-Caitlin, that's because Dansha is just a baby."

"Yes, sweetie, when you were a baby, you were like Dansha."

By the end of the evening, everyone was calling the baby "Dansha".

CJ stifled a huge yawn.

"Sweetheart, you're tired. Is there time for her to take a nap before dinner?" Paul looked at Deborah.

"It's very flexible. I've got some appetizer thingies we can have until CJ's ready." Deborah took Caitlin from her father and asked Paddy to come help her with the snacks.

"Just let me get the baby changed and I'll be in with the rest of you," Paul said.

"Dad, would you show me how? May I -?"

"A task I'm always willing to share," Paul laughed.

They had moved CJ's bathroom things from her vanity to Paul's and had set up a changing area for the baby. Paul showed Derrick how to remove the tiny diaper, how to bathe his little sister's bottom and genital area, what to do with ointment and powder, how to fasten the fresh diaper, and, finally, how to use the Diaper Genie.

"Was I ever this tiny?" Derrick laughed as he fumbled with the sticky tabs.

"Actually, the two of each were each almost a pound and a half less at birth," Paul told him.

"She's got CJ's eyes?"

"That's what it looks like. We won't know for a while. Oh, thank you for bringing things for Paddy and Caitlin as well as for Dansha – well, it looks like she's got a nickname – I think Paddy had some inkling about what would happen but Caitlin is totally out of her element."

Derrick watched as his father gently carried little Dansha to the bassinet, settle her into it. Then he pulled a quilt over a gently snoring CJ, kissed the top of her head, picked up a baby monitor, and motioned to the door.

Forty-five minutes later, CJ came into the family room. She picked at some of last pieces of the cheese and veggie tray on which the rest of the family had been snacking and took a small sip from her husband's glass of wine.

"I'll go get supper on the table." Deborah stood up and CJ started to get up to follow her.

"CJ, sit," Derrick said. "I'll help her."

They were eating in the dining room. The table was set with the good china.

"Mama! I set the table! Derrick showed me how to remember where to put the forks and where to put the knives!" Paddy tugged on CJ's hand.

"And it looks very nice, sweetie." She bent down to kiss his forehead.

"This is something a friend of mine showed me how to make," Deborah said, setting the casserole dish on a trivet, "I hope you like it. It's chicken pieces on broccoli spears, topped with".

"Cream of chicken soup mixed with light cream if you can afford it, otherwise milk, salt, pepper, garlic powder, parmesan cheese, paprika, and parsley flakes," CJ and Paul finished in unison.

"You've had it?" Paul could see a glimmer of disappointment in his daughter's eyes.

"It was making the rounds when we were in school, baby. It smells like you have it right. And we were drinking it with ‘vin exceedingly ordinaire’, not good vintages like this." He poured the bottle of Grey Riesling that Deborah had selected from their collection of varietals from Gina's family's winery.

"And Abbey Bartlet said she made it when she was in med school," CJ added. "The President swears you can find it in the graduate student handbook for the University of Bologna, back in the eleventh century."

There were sliced tomatoes to complement the casserole, as well as crusty sourdough bread. CJ nursed the four ounces of wine that the children's pediatrician said was okay for a nursing mother "maybe four times a week, but I'm a bit conservative. What did you do with Paddy? He seems perfectly fine; let your experience with him be your guide."

Little whimpers came over the baby monitor as they were about to start on dessert (flan with fruit). Paul jumped up, telling CJ to "sit still", and went to tend to Dansha.

Five minutes later, he brought the still fussing child to CJ. "She's hungry; she tried to latch onto me."

CJ draped the blanket Paul handed her over her shoulder and started to unfasten her blouse underneath it, then halted.

"Will this bother you?" she looked at the twins. "I have no problem in front of family, but if you'd rather I didn't, I understand."

"It's not an issue for me, CJ," Deborah assured her. "If I'm going to be helping you and Dad for the next month, I'm sure I'm going to see a lot."

"There's a girl, a woman, in my Environmental Law study group, she brings her baby all the time. I'm okay with it," Derrick assured CJ.

After dessert and coffee (decaffeinated tea for CJ), Derrick rose from the table. "Come on, Paddy, help me with the dishes, No, Deborah, you cooked, we'll clean. And Dad, you just sit with your women."

CJ was ready for more sleep, so she took the baby with her. Caitlin usually wanted to curl up next to Paul but today she felt she needed to assert herself with her mother ("Mama, me!"), so she toddled after her mother, climbed up on the bed next to her (with a fanny assist from CJ), and fell asleep, her face in CJ's stomach and her butt in CJ's armpit (As she dozed off, CJ hoped that her older daughter wouldn't fart in her sleep).

Derrick had tied an apron around Paddy and set him on the first rung of the step stool. He let Paddy rinse the things that could be put in the dishwasher, but Derrick washed the fine china, the sterling, and the crystal by hand. No, he needed to have the water a bit too hot for Paddy to help. And, no, they weren't going to towel dry the things; just let them rest in the drainer.

Deborah and Paul sat in the family room with small liqueur glasses of Aisling's cordial. Paul had just told Deborah to be sure to enjoy her time at the day spa tomorrow, that she had definitely earned it, when the phone rang.

It was Randy, CJ's brother. He and Gina would like to drive down for a few hours tomorrow afternoon. They would bring dinner, they didn't want any special trouble, but they did want to see the baby. They figured they would get there about mid-afternoon, and leave by seven, eight at the latest.

By 9:30, everyone began to feel the effects of their day. Paddy insisted on dragging Derrick's weekender to their room. Paul picked up Caitlin from their bed and carried her to her room. He settled the little girl in her crib, and then kissed Deborah as she came in from the bathroom. After a double check of the doors, he verified that the oven was off, and entered the master bedroom. After two days of sleeping alone, he was looking forward to having CJ in his arms tonight.

Derrick talked with Paddy in the darkness.

"Paddy, you know, being a brother is a big responsibility. We have to look out for our sisters."

"Because they're younger?" Paddy stifled a yawn. He was tired, but talking with Derrick "man to man" was special.

"Not just because of that. Deborah is older than I am, but I still make sure that no one hurts her."

"But you're twins; you were born at the same time."

"Well, yes, but one of us had to come out first."

"Derrick?" Another yawn from Paddy.

"Yeah, buddy?"

"How did the baby get in Mama's tummy and how did it get out?"

(Dad, if you could somehow or another get yourself in here right now -). Derrick took a deep breath.

"Well, Paddy -"and then, as he heard the light snore from the other bed. "Thank God."

Like her brother Paddy, Dansha was a regular feeder, every two hours almost to the minute. However, at least right now she was a much more efficient feeder, only about fifteen minutes each time, so, allowing for a diaper change (and CJ much more efficient at that task with her third child), she was back in bed within twenty-two minutes.

Paul stirred as she crawled back into bed. "What can I do?" he yawned.

"Nothing," she kissed his nose, "unless you can figure out how to breastfeed."

"Next time, let me at least do the diaper."

"Only if you wake up. If you get more sleep at night, you can do more with the other kids during the day." She yawned, snuggled down into her favorite position in his armpit, and fell asleep.

7:30 AM PST; Saturday, January 16, 2015

CJ had just finished feeding Dansha, changing her, and had set her in the bassinet. She started back toward the bed and her husband, but then her stomach growled.

As she walked toward the kitchen, she heard the voices of the twins coming from that room.

"Well, if it makes a difference, he doesn't deserve" Derrick stopped at the sound of CJ's footsteps.

No, she didn't need a full breakfast, just something to quiet her stomach. Amy Marshall sent over some cranberry-orange bread yesterday when she first got home. That would do.

Walking back to the bedroom, she wondered what was troubling Deborah and made a mental note to mention it to Paul Then she promptly forgot about it as soon as her head hit the pillow.

After Deborah left for the day spa, promising to be home by four at the latest, since they were having company, Derrick took charge of Paddy and Caitlin. He fed them, took them to the park, played with them, and read to them.

CJ and Paul were able to rest, and to take a shower together. It would be six weeks before they could truly be together, but, assuming they both wanted it, Mariska said that "other forms" could start again in a few days. CJ had warned Paul that she had had "issues" when Paddy was born; Paul told her they would figure out everything when the time came. And, like that first fall so many years ago, she would set the pace; he would wait for her.

When Randy and Gina arrived, not only did they bring food for that evening (penne with sausage, mushrooms, and pepper; scampi with saffron rice; cheese manicotti with a thin tomato broth, and cannoli for dessert), they brought fourteen meals from all the women in Gina's extended family. ("I hope there's room in your freezer; if there isn't, I'll take some of it back with us and run it down in a few weeks.")

When Deborah returned, Paul suggested that they change into nice casual clothes and have Randy take a photo of the family.

"We can include it with the birth announcement," he suggested.

"You haven't sent them yet?" CJ asked, a bit perturbed.

"Things came up," Paul answered her quietly, and she remembered the news from Dr. Barr. Not everything was wonderful.

"It's okay," CJ smiled and reached over to kiss her husband.

So with everyone changed into nice sweaters and Dansha in an outfit that Hank had designed just for her, the picture was taken. Paul and CJ were sitting on the couch, Dansha in CJ's arms, Caitlin on Paul's lap. Deborah, Paddy, and Derrick were on the floor in front of their parents.

Paul loaded it into his laptop, pasted it into the email with "And Baby Makes Seven" as subject, and started the mail merge process that would show and tell all their friends of their blessed news.

"Thank God for modern technology," Derrick said.

Several people, when opening the email, remarked that there seemed to be a back shadowing of the seven people in the photo, like ghosts on a television screen.

Sorcha and Aisling looked at their copies and smiled.

_"The old technology was good enough for Lincoln," Matthew Brady harrumphed as he set up his equipment. "Is everyone in place?"_

_Danny and Alicia gathered the five children around them, the twins and Theo standing in the back, Danielle, Danny, Alicia, and Leslie sitting on little tufts of cloud, and Pistol lying in front of the group._

_The photographer put the glass plate in place and slipped under the cover of his camera._

_"Everyone be real still!"_

Author's note:

To my knowledge, the genetic disorder I've described in this chapter does not exist, but it is consistent with my knowledge of genetics, chromosomes, etc.

I thought long and hard about the ethics of inventing a disease when there is already so much sickness in the world, but I needed something to explain why Alicia lost two babies after the twins and why, had CJ and Paul remained together and married in the mid-eighties, why she would also have miscarried after their first child.


End file.
